Whether you’re looking for the ideal song for slow dancing with your special someone, or you want to wallow in a sad one because you’re dealing with heartbreak, there’s a Johnny Mathis track that will feel just right for the occasion. Mathis was only 21 years old when his first single in 1956 introduced to the world a singer of incredible technical skill and deep emotional connection to the lyrics.
Mathis is still as busy as ever, singing his ballads for adoring audiences everywhere. Let’s take a look at five slow ones that still melt hearts to this day.
“It’s Not for Me to Say” (Single, 1957)
Anyone remember the 1957 film Lizzie? Nobody? Well, the film might not have made much of an impact, but it wisely gave a small role to Mathis as a singer (big stretch). And two of the songs he’s been singing for about seven decades or so came from that movie: “Warm and Tender” and “It’s Not for Me to Say.” The latter, written by Robert Allen and Al Stillman, features Mathis sinking his teeth into one of the first great ballads of his career. His control and slow-build into the big finish are both masterful, and even more amazing considering how young he was at the time.
“Chances Are” (Single, 1958)
If you’re going to call any single track Mathis’ signature song, it would have to be “Chances Are.” It was his first No. 1 (the next one would come 21 years later and is also on this list). The song (also written by Allen and Stillman) is also the basis for many impersonators’ versions of Mathis, as it displays that unique technique where he almost seems to skip over opening consonant sounds to concentrate on trilling his way through the vowels. What’s really striking is how he manages to work his way through the song in measured fashion, so that when he gets to the final punch line, the impact is undeniable.
“The Twelfth of Never” (B-Side, 1957)
Mathis allegedly wasn’t crazy about this song, written by Paul Francis Weber and Jerry Livingston, before finally relenting to record it. Good thing he did, because his version went into the Top 10 in 1957, the year Mathis owned the pop charts. Many others have recorded the song, but Mathis’ version is undoubtedly the definitive. The lyrics could come off as cheesy, but Mathis sings them as if they were handed down to him by a higher power. He inhabits the momentous production without any ounce of self-consciousness, which, again, is stunning considering his youth when he recorded it.
“Misty” from Heavenly (1959)
Of all the songs on this list, “Misty” is the one that’s most clearly defined as a standard, meaning it’s been covered hundreds of times. That’s why it’s so telling that it’s Mathis’ version that stands out as the one that people know the most. With music by Errol Garner and lyrics by Johnny Burke, it’s another song on this list that needs just the right touch. We’re talking about a song where a thousand violins are following the narrator around, so it could easily get syrupy. But when you hear Mathis tackle those words, they seem endlessly romantic.
“Too Much, Too Little, Too Late” (duet with Deniece Williams) (Single, 1978)
Sometimes, two voices just work together for reasons that are hard to fathom. Such is the case of Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams. On paper, Mathis’ velvety croon and Williams’ bubbly chirp wouldn’t seem to match. And yet, on this song (written by Nat Kipner and John Vallins) of a romance staggering to its conclusion, they’re absolute perfection together. The result was a No. 1 song for Mathis to prove that he hadn’t lost an ounce of his ability to communicate heartfelt emotions. Mathis and Williams would later get together again to sing the theme song to the hit ’80s TV show Family Ties, proving their chemistry all over again.
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